Saudi Aramco Total Refinery and Petrochemicals Company (SATORP) expects its new refinery at Jubail in Saudi Arabia to be fully operational in December 2013, the joint venture's chief executive said Tuesday. Saudi Aramco and France's Total are building the $14 billion Jubail facility as part of a push by the world's top oil exporter to almost double its refining capacity. "Overall Engineering, Procurement and Construction work at the refinery is 68 percent complete," Fawwaz Nawwab, CEO of Satorp, told reporters in the Saudi capital Riyadh. Nawwab said that although the refinery was designed to process 400,000 barrels per day (bpd), Saudi Aramco had committed to supply it with up to 440,000 bpd. Jubail will refine Saudi heavy crude into a range of fuels - from gasoline to petroleum coke - for domestic consumption and export. SATORP is set to issue up to SR3.75 billion ($1 billion) in Islamic bonds, or sukuk, with final pricing expected by the end of the month, lead arrangers said Tuesday. "It's up to SR3.75 billion. Its been offered in Saudi riyals only to Saudi entities, could be less, but you can't exceed SR3.75 billion," Usman Sikandar, director and co-head of investment banking at Saudi Fransi Capital told Reuters at an investor presentation. He added that the sukuk would mature about 11 years after completion of the refinery, expected in December 2013. "This is a very good project, its a secure project, the sponsors are guaranteeing this, so the risk factor is very low and its a good investment and there's a lot of cash in the kingdom," Nawwab told reporters.
